-LRB- CNN -RRB- -- Gadget fans eagerly awaiting the next wave of Apple products just got some good news , and some bad news .

First , the bad : Based on CEO Tim Cook 's comments Tuesday on the company 's quarterly earnings call , Apple appears unlikely to announce a major new product until this fall at the earliest . If so , that would mean the company , which typically rolls out new stuff every three or four months , will have gone an entire year -- an eternity in tech-industry time -- without launching a new gadget .

And now the good : Cook also said Apple sees potential in some `` exciting new product categories . ''

On the surface , there 's not much news in that last statement . But as the most-watched tech company in the world , Apple 's every utterance is parsed for its deeper meaning . Many observers see those four words as further evidence that Apple is moving beyond laptops , phones and tablets into other areas of computing -- most likely a `` smartwatch '' that could display messages , or a long-rumored connected TV .

`` Our teams are hard at work on some amazing new hardware , software and services , and we are very excited about the products in our pipeline , '' Cook said , adding `` we ca n't wait to introduce -LRB- them -RRB- this fall and throughout 2014 . ''

This may just be corporate PR speak , aimed at assuaging investors concerned about Apple 's plummeting stock price . But it could serve to re-energize the Apple faithful who line up to buy whatever new gizmos the company makes and may be growing impatient for new ones .

Of course , Cook made similar comments early in 2012 when he said Apple was working to deliver `` some products that will blow your mind . '' What followed were the usual updates to Macs and iPods , plus the iPhone 5 and the iPad Mini -- solid if not groundbreaking products .

Blogosphere reaction this week to Cook 's comments has been mixed .

`` Apple almost never spills any beans about what its product plans are , so it 's worth getting excited about fall based on Tim 's willingness to talk about that specific period , as well as his mention of ` new product categories , ' '' wrote Darrell Etherington in TechCrunch . `` Still , unless he 's purposefully trying to throw us off the scent , people eager for new Apple products might also want to sleep through the summer . ''

Slate 's Will Oremus thinks Cook 's teases about mind-blowing future products reflect a shift in Apple 's approach to promotion since co-founder Steve Jobs died in 2011 .

`` In the past , Apple did n't have to promise exciting new things , '' he wrote . `` It just delivered them . ''

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CEO Tim Cook : Apple sees potential in some `` exciting new product categories ''

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Observers see those remarks as evidence Apple is making `` smartwatch , '' possibly a TV

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Cook 's comments also suggest Apple wo n't announce a major new product until this fall